Discussion Roland SP-300 Roland will no longer service the printer

[Jim Hill]

I contacted the Roland Dealer to have a service tech come out and service my SP-300 and he told me this would be the last time they would come out to service my printer because Roland classified this printer has a legacy printer which means they are no longer making parts for it.

I was wondering if anyone else had already run into this problem?

I know that when a company decides to no longer supply parts someone buys up all the inventory they can find and then offers the parts at a markup for sale in many cases.

Anyone knows if anyone is buying up their inventory of SP-300 parts and I was wondering if the SP-300V and SP-300i are also consided legacy printers by Roland?

I know China is still making parts.
Thanks Jim

 

[LED Signs & Designs Texas]

Parts are one thing, finding someone to fix it is another. I guess if you can fix it yourself, you can go on as long as you have the parts. Good luck!

 

[Goatshaver]

The local tech in my area worked on my SP-540V not that long ago. I don't see why they can't...just not covered under and kind of warranties.

 

[Jim Hill]

I have repaired this printer over the past 10 years since I purchased it from the original owner and it has always used Roland inks.
Because of health reasons this time I said I will just hire a Roland Tech instead.

I though the SP-300 and the SP-300V and SP-300i were very similar except for the different in how many heads they use and that is why I was wondering if those other printers are also considered legacy printers also.

I know that many of the consumable parts are still being made in China and I really don't like using their stuff but if that is the only way I may have to try it.
After 18 years in business and because of health reasons and age 73 I will only work for another year or so.

The Roland SP-300 is a workhorse and other then changing a few heads and a fuse once in a while and converting it to an SP-300V so I can using Versaworks it has paid for itself many times over.

Jim

 

[FrankW]

I though the SP-300 and the SP-300V and SP-300i were very similar except for the different in how many heads they use and that is why I was wondering if those other printers are also considered legacy printers also.

The SP300, the SP300V and the SP300i have the same amount of print heads (there are two DX4 Printheads). The heads, and lots of other parts (capping, ink dampers and so on) are no genuine roland parts, so you can buy them from different companies, and they will work. But this source will not flow endlessly, people with 1st generation Hifijets/Soljets currently run into problems getting simple things like cappings. In addition, some of the parts used in SP300/SP300V (the I is a newer version) are used in newer generation roland printers too, so they will be available too. Problems will arise if you need specific parts, for example parts of the electronics. And even Chinese factories will not build specific parts when its not longer worth it.

And there is an other side: dealers who won't hold spare parts on stock for that machines, or won't train new technicians on that machines. So, even if they are ready to order old parts, it could be that they won't come over to fix your machine, or that it takes a lot of time until the machine is up and running again.

If you want to use a printer which is more than 10 years off the market you should train yourself to repair it on your own. And you should be prepared that needed spare parts take a long time to get to you, so the possibility of longer downtime exists.

I don't know how it is in the US, but in Europe for example a Mimaki CJV150-75 print & cut is very affordable. I work for a Mimaki Dealer since a few months, and after reading the price for the first time, I was really shocked).

By the way: I would not post in the open public that you have converted your SP300 to SP300V to use VersaWorks. Officially, you have a license only for roland colorip with a SP300, and modifying the printer to let it work with VersaWorks is like cracking software ;-) .

 

[Jim Hill]

Frank W thanks for the great advice.

I will look into the Mimaki CJV150-75

Thank Jim

 

[Scott at Roland]

Frank W thanks for the great advice.

I will look into the Mimaki CJV150-75

Thank Jim

Hi Jim - So, a lot of what Frank W above says is correct. The deal with the SP-300 is that the print heads and consumables are still available for this model. We have just discontinued the Main Board and Servo Boards due to the age of the product. So the printer should mostly still be serviceable, unless one of those parts fails.
I know Frank mentioned Mimaki, but I would also seriously consider a new Roland. The SG series is very affordable and you already know VersaWorks (he was right about that too!) so the learning curve is pretty short. Just a suggestion.

 

[player]

The SG series seems to be full of problems from what I read here and elsewhere.

 

[Jim Hill]

Player:

Your comments about the SG Series is the exact same thing I was thinking and hearing from others who have purchased one.

I know I am considered old fashion for still using the SP-300 but in my opinion the SP-300 was one of the Best Printers Roland ever made.
It's easy to repair and it is also a great printers that most of the time works like a charm!

Jim

 

[Scott at Roland]

Player:

Your comments about the SG Series is the exact same thing I was thinking and hearing from others who have purchased one.

I know I am considered old fashion for still using the SP-300 but in my opinion the SP-300 was one of the Best Printers Roland ever made.
It's easy to repair and it is also a great printers that most of the time works like a charm!

Jim

Hi Jim - I am not going to argue your point about the SP-300 printer. As someone who installed over 100 of those printers back in the day, the only complaint I ever had with that model was how heavy it was! Other than that, and based on how long you've had it, I have no complaints about it. As far as the SG series, we are now up to version 2 of that line (SG2-300). Since I don't know exactly what complaints people had regarding the original SG (I have only been monitoring this site for a month or two) - I cannot address them directly. But I can say that the SG2 and it's cousin the VG2 are pretty great machines. And I am not just saying that cuz I wear a Roland shirt. However, I am a firm believer in trying before buying, so if it's something you are interested in at least checking out, please PM me and I can help you get in touch with a dealer.

 

[Jim Hill]

Scott:

I agree with you about how heavy the SP-300 is.

The day I received it I had my son who is also a bodybuilder help me take it out of the box and assemble it and the two of us lifted up onto the stand and it was really heavy!
I am 73 and because of health reasons I will only run my business for maybe one more year at the most.

I thank you for your suggestions on the new printer.

Over the years that I have owned the printer I have changed heads, encoder strips, scanner motors, and many other parts and one of the things I loved about the SP-300 is if you have a little bit of technical knowledge and engineering skills you can fix many things on the printer yourself if you have the the Roland Service Guide Book for the SP-300

The reason I had contacted the Roland Dealer for service was I had been having medical problems for the past few months and finally just decided to ask for help.
I called and cancelled the service call simply because I am now feeling well enough to do it myself again.

Thanks again Scott for the phone call and your help.

Jim

 

[Kootchy]

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